The Sorrows of Young Draco Malfoy
by noarmsjustsheetstoholdme
Summary: Not everything is what it seems. The mask that Draco Malfoy hid behind for his entire life is finally removed and secrets are revealed, not only the ones related to that special someone. A story about love, forgiveness and the truly important things.
1. A late night adventure

A small bead of sweat trickeld down his forehead and fell on the cold, lithic floor of the Gryffindor common room as he silently pushed down the door handle. Cold air streamed in and rose his hackles, simultaneously banished the last warmth of the ceasing fire in the fireplace.

He had lain awake for hours, pondering about what he should do, until he finally realised the only possible solution was to face the truth and reveal everything. To talk about all the things that kept him up at night, that made him become cheerless and doleful, that made him push away everyone close to him.

Briefly, he hesitated. He closed the door behind him. All alone in the castle whilst everyone else had already fallen asleep. Quickly yet quiet, he made his way down the stairs of the seventh floor, always protected by his loyal invisibility cloak.

It took him a while to surmount the hundreds of steps, intersections and shortcuts of the castle he knew so well and had called his home for six years now, but when he finally reached his aim, he paused for a second. Nobody could have possibly seen him making his way down the tower, nevertheless he could hear his own heartbeat out of tautness.

Harry Potter took a deep breath before he pulled down his cloak and entered the Slytherins' common room.

Ron stood on top of the staircase when the huge, wooden door that seperated the Gryffindors from the rest of Hogwarts was closed. Although he did not see anyone leaving, he knew exactly who made tracks for a late-night adventure. Ron, always known as Harry's best friend, had a fitful sleep that night and, in fact, noticed that Harry left his bed at some point. Though he never was afraid of Harry and trusted him unconditionally, he was slightly disappointed of him. Why didn't Harry ask him to join? What would be confidential enough for him to conceal from his best friend?

„Nothing.", Ron silently said to himself and decided to follow Harry modestly.

For a second, he wondered if he should ask Hermione to accompany him, but immediately abolished the idea. Hermione would want him to stay and let Harry do whatever he was planning to do. „It's not like you have to know everything. You're not his wife.", he wispered in a voice which sounded nothing like Hermione. She wasn't there but he was already annoyed. Besides, he wouldn't even be able to reach the girls' dorms due to the rules.

The door of the common room opened and closed again. Not the last time this night.

The room in which the students of Slytherin spent their free time (It looks more like a prison than a common room, Harry thought.), looked exactly like Harry remembered it. When he and Ron had taken Polyjuice Potion to sneak in four years ago, they found themselves in a dark chamber under the lake. The green light and the dark furniture caused the depressing atmosphere that made Harry shiver. He tried to orientate in the darkness and low-spiritedly noticed that he had no idea where to go. Fortunately, he was Harry Potter. Fortunately, he had access to a lot of objects. One grasp in his poket and he was unfolding the Marauder's map, Fred and George gave to him in his third year at Hogwarts. It did not take long and he discovered what he was looking for. Or more precisely, for whom. The name appeared quickly, about 30 feet away from him, in one of the dorms on the right. It did not move. Asleep, like everyone else but Harry.

He stared at the map for a minute, as if he wanted to absorb the letters to make sure he was absolutely right. As he turned, he closed the map. „Mischief managed", he whispered.

The name „Draco Malfoy" faded away.


	2. It's not just you who can't sleep

The silver pattern on the ceiling of his canopy bed, the curlicues, the waves of the brilliant thread on the dark green cloth.  
>Draco Malfoy layed on his back, his blanket unhandily tangled between his pale legs. He had been anxious the whole night and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't find any sleep. Instead, he structinized the dark Slytherin dorm to distract himself from all the thoughts that were running through his mind so remorseless.<br>Goyle expelled a loud snore and consequently brought Draco down to earth again. He teared his blonde hair.

Why him? And even more significant: Why now? How could destiny probably be so hostile to him?

He could have understood so much earlier, he could have tried to avert what now tormented him as soon as the lights turned out and he was alone with his thoughts. He could have banished the boy with the scar from the very first day – and with him all the intricate feelings that accompanied the name 'Harry Potter'.

His thoughts were interrupted by a second noise, but it was not a snore. It was someone outside, someone who tried to enter the room he unsuccesfully tried to sleep in.

Shouts abruptly broke the silence in the castle. „Students out of bed! Students out of bed!", Argus Filch's voice declared. Mrs Norris purred when she twined around Ron's shivering legs.

The boy who lived did not hear anything about the incidents outside. He concentrated on what was in front of him: the door that seperated him from what he was longing for so long, concurrently feared more than the Dark Lord himself. Again, he hesitated and the silence only was interrupted by the sound of his breathing. Again, he weight up. There was no resort, or at least he was waiting for too long to find one. It was inevitable, not only because he couldn't hide his feelings any longer. He needed to talk to Draco and tell him everything.  
>The words had run through his mind so many times, Harry knew exactly what he wanted to say.<p>

How he never wanted them to become enemies. How he slowly realised that the blonde Slytherin boy passed his mind unusually often.

At first, Harry himself didn't want to admit that Draco Malfoy meant a lot more to him than anyone would have expected, that hearing his voice and seing his face gave Harry butterflies, and, despite Draco's harshness, that he had already fallen for him.

As time passed by, Harry allowed this kind of feelings and it became clear to him that he had to reveal his biggest secret, or else he would have to be desperately in love with someone he pretended to hate.

A small hint of uncertainty made him take on his cloak again. Nothing should be left to chance now.

Deputy Headminestress Minerva McGonagall darted an angry glance at the youngest Weasley boy.

Ron was trembling, not only because he forgot to take his cloak with him. He had been sitting on the uncomfortable chair in McGonagall's office quite often. But he never was all alone. Harry or at least Hermione were always with him, and Ron himself knew that these two were more talented in finding excuses then he was. Fumbling for words, McGonagall had already chimed in: „Mr Weasley, could you please explain to me why you are wandering around the castle when everyone else is in their dorms as told? Did you fancy a little midnight promenade?". Ashamed and guilty, Ron looked down at his feet. „And why, Mr Weasley,", McGonagall continued, „are you breaking the rules on your own? Normally, Harry Potter or at least Miss Granger would accompany you. I am afraid something could have happened! Do you need to tell me anything?"

'I'd like to know what is going on here, too.', Ron thought but did not say. As he looked up, McGonagall's penetrating glance speared him once again. „I...I was..." He knew that he had to tell the truth, but he didn't want to get Harry into any trouble. „There was a noise. I...woke up and went outside our dorm to see if there was a problem. As soon as I was on top of the staircase, the door of the common room closed. I just wanted to check what was going on, but I wanted to stay on my own. I'm sorry." „Even good intentions do not justify rule-breaking, Mr Weasley. Twenty points from Gryffindor."

His eyes needed to accustom to the darkness inside the room first. Harry closed the wooden door with a muted 'click'. Protected by his cloak of invisibility, he looked around the room. There were four beds, distributed in the round room. It was cold and the bone-crushing silence was only interrupted by loud snores. Harry wondered if it was him and he tried to determine the direction the noises were coming from while his eyes could slowly agnised more and more details.

„I am over here, Potter!"

The sound of Draco's voice gave Harry goose bumps.


End file.
